Meant to Be
by IbtiWiptyWoo
Summary: The Fairy Tail characters in the Divergent universe. Gray Fullbuster tells his tale as he makes the most important choice of his life, tries to adjust to living life as Dauntless, and meeting everyone along the way. Eventual Gruvia. Divergent AU. Multi-chapter. T for language.
1. Chapter 1: Choose Your Own Destiny

Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail, it belongs to Hiro Mashima.

Divergent AU, Gray-centred. I tried to keep them in character while also weaving in some characteristics of their old factions. It's going to have some Gruvia, too.

I don't know if I'll continue this later on, but I do like this AU.

The factions of some important characters include:

Gray, Natsu, Cana – Candor  
Lucy – Abnegation  
Levy, Erza – Erudite  
Gajeel, Juvia, all the Strauss siblings – Dauntless

Well, enjoy! Please leave a review.

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**Meant to Be**

**Chapter One: Choose Your Own Destiny**

I inhale. And exhale. And greet the day that will hold my fate.

Ok, forget I even said that. It sounded way better in my head.

Well, I guess I should explain that a little. So, today's the day. The day I would finally be able to change my little life. My Choosing Ceremony. Never has any minor been entrusted with any real power, in any faction anywhere, but now—now I have all the power I could ever want. I could change my whole life. Which is cool, I guess. But it's a bit risky to let angsty, horny, hormone-y sixteen-year-olds choose something as important as their faction—which is coincidentally the exact age that most of them are in their rebellious phase. For me, I don't even care if I'm in mine right now at this point—I just want to leave my faction behind and start my life.

I glance at my reflection in the mirror as I button up my coat, which is white with black trim at the edges. It's one of my best pieces of clothing. I have a habit of losing clothing, something I can never explain, but which my elders – the faction representatives of Candor, since we don't have only one official leader – don't approve of in the least. Mostly because "I don't know, I just strip," doesn't sound like the truth to them. It would be a waste to use truth serum on a minor issue like this – after all they're getting money out of it, since Ur has to keep buying new clothes for me – but I swear I don't know where all my clothes go. Right now, I'm wearing more than usual – a shirt, a button-up, and my coat on top of that – so that when I lose one layer, at least I have something else. I'll just have to pay attention to my pants...

I check my hair, which is near impossible to tame, so I leave it as the unruly, unkempt mess it is. Actually, today's a rather good hair day for me. Usually I have to put a bunch of product in it to keep it still. Maybe my hair knows that today is an important day for me. The day I get to choose what faction will be my new, permanent home.

I step out of my room and glance around, wondering if this will be the last time I see it. It's quite bare, because the faction leaders believe that unnecessary decorations and trinkets will only help us to stray from what is real and true, just like how things like poetry – pretty words, metaphors, the like – stray from the truth. It doesn't make any sense if you ask me. I guess it kind of makes us like Abnegation that way; we stick to the essentials. This is also reflected in our clothing: black and white, quite simple most of the time.

Even though my room is plain, and identical to everyone else's, that's still my bed in the corner, the one I've used since birth, basically. That's still my closet, holding my clothes (which I lose on a daily basis anyway). There is a blank spot on the wall that is lighter than the wallpaper by just a shade, where I had stuck a family photo of me, Ur, Lyon and Ultear (before they left) and myself. It's now tucked into my pocket.

I take a breath, and leave without looking over my shoulder, closing the door behind me. I feel a pang of nostalgia, but I ignore it best as I can, because there is no time for that right now. I can't continue living here. I have to move on. And now is the only opportunity I'll ever get.

Ur greets me downstairs, and we eat a modest breakfast together. Ever since Ultear and Lyon left after their respective Choosing Ceremonies, we've always been eating together alone, just her and me. We usually don't talk; we're comfortable in each other's presence anyway, so it doesn't really matter. As I tell her good morning, I feel guilt resting in the pit of my stomach, and I can't shake the feeling. I'll be leaving her today. I love Ur, more than anybody else in the whole world. But I have to go or I won't be able to live with myself.

Nothing's wrong with Candor. I understand their teachings and I believe in them too—to some extent. I don't thinking forcing the truth out of someone is right, at all. I don't actually understand why Ur chose Candor. I know she used to be Dauntless—she never told me directly, but she has a tattoo of a snowflake on her arm and piercing holes. She has muscles, and tanned skin, with various scars I've caught glimpses of over the years. I just put two and two together. If I had been born Dauntless, I wouldn't have chosen Candor. But she must have had her reasons, I suppose.

Ever since the test, which was only yesterday, I haven't been able to get these thoughts out of my head. About the factions, Ur's past, my future. Ultear and Lyon never told me about their test results, but I always had an idea Ultear was Erudite. Lyon choosing Erudite was a surprise, though. I never thought of him that way. He seemed so at home here, in Candor. He was a strong speaker, definitely a man of truth. If only I'd noticed his interested in speeches had more to do with the research and information than with the truth. I didn't expect to lose both my siblings to the same faction, and one I would never choose, at that. Just look at my grades, and you'd see I'm not Erudite material. I miss them, though. But every time I allow myself to miss them, however briefly, I tell myself: Faction before blood.

Faction before blood.

I breathe in again. And out again. Ur is looking at me, almost expectantly.

"Are you ready?" Ur asks, and I'm snapped out of my trance into reality.

I shrug, and she walks over to me. I don't know when I got taller than her, but I tower over her now. She looks up at me, her dark eyes shiny with—tears? The Ur I know never cries. And yet, here she is...

"Gray," she says, "remember, no matter what, I will always love you, ok? This is _your_ life. I've made my choice, now you make yours. Think about yourself before you think about me. But you have to remember, Gray: after you've made your choice, it is faction be—"

"Faction before blood, I know," I interrupt her, even though it's ridiculous, because Ur isn't even my real mother and we aren't related by blood at all. I almost want to smile, but somehow I can't quite manage it.

I feel wetness on my cheek, and wipe it away before I allow more tears to come. I sniff hard and shrug again. Ur puts her hand on my cheek and wipes another tear away. Suddenly she wraps her arms around me, and holds me tight, like she used to do before, when I was still a child and didn't have to worry about these things. It's comforting to be in her embrace. Ur is the only parental figure in my life I have ever had, the only person I ever looked up to. I would look up to Lyon or Ultear, but ever since they left us, I almost consider them traitors.

I am such a filthy hypocrite.

I don't notice Ur has pulled away until I miss her warmth. I look her in the eye, and somehow, I know she knows. She knows I'm going to abandon her. The guilt I felt before returns, even stronger. But she still puts on a smile, just like she did for Lyon and Ultear. The smile doesn't quite reach her eyes.

"Let's go," she says, and we leave.

We leave the house, and start walking, side by side. We arrive at the Hub sooner than I'd like.

As we arrive at the tall building, I watch the people from different factions all come in at different times. It's funny to see them all in their respective faction colours, coming together. I spot some Erudite (none of them are Lyon or Ultear) and a large group of Amity, and some Abnegation. The Dauntless haven't arrived yet. Their train will arrive any minute. I've always wanted to try it, honestly. They do the weirdest, most fucked up shit, but it's the kind of shit I also want to get caught up in.

I shake my head to get rid of my thoughts just as I spot two familiar heads in the crowd. It's Natsu Dragneel and Cana Alberona, my best friends since birth. They're Candor like me, but they, too, never really belonged here. We never really talk about factions, or what we'll choose. We haven't seen each other since our tests at all. It's not something I want to discuss with them, anyway.

Ur smiles at me. "Go to them," she says. "I'll save you a seat inside." She leaves my side.

I head towards the brunette and...uh, pink-haired idiot. What is he, a pinket? Pinkette? Is that even a word? Whatever. So, I must mention that Cana and Natsu have quite the reputation – Natsu for his habit of starting fights and Cana for her drinking...uh, _problem_ – and Candor isn't necessarily proud of them for that. I have mine, as well, I should mention. Sometimes my habit of stripping without noticing it gets me into compromising situations, more than I'd like.

Natsu spots me before I even get to them, and waves a hand in the air.

"Yo! Ice Princess!"

That nickname earns some stares, and even some badly-concealed laughter. I glare at him.

"How you doin'?" Cana asks, and I see that she's holding a bottle of God-knows-what in her hand. It'll get confiscated for sure once we enter the Hub. It's run by the Abnegation, who usually look down on such behaviour, so they'll take it from her for sure. I just hope she won't make a fuss about it like last time. She can cause quite the scene, like that Flame-Brain idiot.

I nod at both of them and we go inside.

"Nervous?" Cana asks, and I turn to see her eyebrows turned upwards slightly. Cana Alberona, drinking expert, fearless bitch, one of my best friends—nervous. I didn't see that one coming. She's almost never worried about anything. Not exams, not drinking until she can't stand, not even during our first time. Granted, we were drunk, but still. But, come to think of it, I have light butterflies in my stomach and I feel a cold sweat coming on.

Damn it.

"A bit," I admit. I hate to say it. I'm almost tempted to lie, but I know she'll see right through me. She can read me like an open book. It doesn't help that we are taught how to tell if people are lying since a young age. Lying will do little to calm her nerves.

"Oh," she says shortly. She turns to Flame-Brain. "Natsu? What about it? You a pussy like Gray over here?"

"Nah, man!" Natsu says (well, shouts), grinding his fist into his palm, his expression changing into a devilish smile. "I'm all fired up!"

He's not lying. Leave it to Natsu. It's like he's never nervous about anything, and here I am. I'm stressed, but I stop myself from taking off my coat.

Finally, we enter the busy Hub. Cana's drink got confiscated (not after she downed it all in one go, though) as I predicted, but she seems to be in higher spirits. Oh, my God, fuck. Ignore the shitty pun.

"Good luck," I say to both Cana and Natsu, though mostly Cana because Natsu's just an idiot. They echo me and we give each other silent nods before leaving to our seats. We were never big on goodbyes, really. I have a feeling, though, that this isn't really goodbye for us.

I spot Ur near the front of the Candor seats, and she waves at me, her expression calm. _The calm before the storm,_ I can't help but think, which makes me guilty all over again. I've taken my coat off before I've even gotten to my seat. Natsu and Cana both go to their parents for their final moments with them. It's no use to pretend. I know what they're going to choose. I know them. And they know me.

The Choosing Ceremony is hosted by Erudite this year, and there's an older Erudite woman up on stage, reading some speech that I'm not even listening to. She's the Erudite's leader. My leg is bouncing up and down and I don't stop it, because at least it does something to calm my nerves. After they woman ends her speech with, "Faction before blood," and we all echo it. The woman leaves the stage, and another woman in blue comes on.

I hear my breath hitch in my throat, and Ur gasps lightly. I know she's doing all she can to keep from crying, and I'm doing all I can to stop myself from going up on stage and shout at her, kick, scream and punch her for all she did to Ur. For all I'm about to do to Ur.

Because up on stage is Ultear, dressed in a deep blue suit and trousers, with heels that _clink_ on the floor. She holds a long list in her hand, and she starts reading it (in reverse alphabetical order by last name, I know that much) but I'm not even listening. All I do is stare at her. She's changed these past three years—her hair is shorter, for some reason, and tied up. It doesn't suit her. She's wearing glasses – which is utterly ridiculous, because she doesn't need them – and her accent is slightly different, her voice lower. Her posture is perfect. I don't see Lyon, but I'm sure he's the same. Prim and proper and smart.

Fuck him. Fuck her. Fuck them all.

There have been no transfers so far—everyone has chosen their own faction. This makes me nervous. There have been several Amity and Erudite, one or two Abnegation, one Candor, two or three Dauntless. Then it happens—a girl from Erudite gets called up. Erza Scarlett, her name is. She's got long red hair and a certain air about her, like she's strong. She looks it, too. She walks up the podium without hesitation, her shoulders slack, her hands steady. She takes the knife, makes a swift cut, and holds her hand over the last bowl on the left.

Dauntless.

She's the first transfer.

The Dauntless cheer for her, a deafening noise. I hear nothing from the Erudite – no cry, no scream, nothing – and she walks to her new faction without looking back. She probably had no one to look back at.

After her is a guy named Gajeel Red-something. Redoffs? Redclocks? Hell if I know. He's Dauntless, and doesn't transfer. He's got a creepy grin that rivals Natsu's and red eyes, if I'm not mistaken. Hm. Weird.

There are more and more girls and boys, some transfers, but most of them stay in their own faction, which makes my guilt even worse.

When we hit M, we get another transfer from Erudite to Dauntless, a petite girl with blue hair. I caught the name McGarden. That makes two to Dauntless transfers, and both from Erudite. There aren't actually that many from Dauntless, I noticed.

Only when we get to L is there another Dauntless. She's tall, with long blue hair in waves, like pool water. Shit, that sounds seriously stupid. Never mind. Her hair's blue, that's all I need to say. She's got a leather jacket on and tight black jeans and looks confident, but something else too. Not recklessness or cruelty, like I sensed in that guy with the red eyes. The opposite, in fact. Thoughtfulness. She picks up the knife, makes a quick cut, and no sooner than her blood drips over the burning coals she is already back in her seat. Dauntless roars in pride. The red-eyed Gajeel high-fives her.

I don't even know her name, but she makes an impact on me. She knew exactly what she wanted and went for it. The others did, too, but there was something fluid about her motions. Like...water. Fuck, here we are with the fucking pool comparisons again. After her, there's so many people. So many names. So many words coming from stupid Ultear's smart-ass mouth.

Then, another transfer that caught my eye, in H. Something Heartfilia. I've heard the name before, but from where? She's an Abnegation girl, blonde. She chose Dauntless.

That's unusual. Abnegation to Dauntless? Her choice is applauded by the brave faction, but the selfless faction remains quiet. She, too, must be leaving nobody important behind for her to receive silence.

We finish H. Then G. We're approaching F.

Ur squeezes my hand.

"Fullbuster, Gray."

She lets go.

I stand up, wanting to smoothen out my button-up but I've already discarded it somewhere, leaving me only with a black shirt. I walk up, towards the stage, and pick up the knife under Ultear's uninterested gaze. I meet her eyes and the world goes still. Her eyes leave mine for a moment to look behind me—at Ur, no doubt. I see a hint of sadness behind her eyes, but she immediately looks back at me, raising her eyebrows slightly, as if to say, "Well, go on then, little brother. Go ahead and abandon her, too."

I glance at the bowl that signifies Candor, with glass in it. My eyes drift from it, slowly, towards the left. Towards the coals. I look back at Ultear. She nods slightly at me. I make my final decision.

I cut my hand, not even feeling the pain at this point because I'm only hearing the blood rushing through my ears and feeling the adrenaline pumping through my veins. I move my arm to the left, then unclench my fist, and a single drop of my crimson blood falls and sizzles on the red-hot coals.

Dauntless cheers for their new recruit. Candor stays in silence.

I don't dare look back at Ur; I don't want to see the disappointment in her eyes...I won't be able to bear it. So I leave, and I join my new faction-mates, taking an empty seat at the front. I blend in with my black shirt and pants, I guess. The only thing out of place is the white accents on my clothes.

I feel someone watching me, and turn only to lock eyes with the blue-haired girl from Dauntless. She smiles at me. I try and smile back, but it must have looked like a grimace, because she made a weird face and quickly looked away.

Once F and E are over, Natsu is called forward. He looks confident, but pretty reckless, and I know what a dumb idiot he is. He chooses Dauntless. I knew he would. I think everyone knew he would.

He comes and sits next to me, grinning like the idiot he is. I grin too.

Soon enough, some more Dauntless, Candor and Amity and whatever go to their new or original factions. Some more transfers. I've pretty much stopped listening to whatever Ultear is saying. I'm waiting to hear another name, one more name I need to hear. Natsu's waiting for it, too.

"Alberona, Cana."

She steps forward, her movements sure and bold, like they always are. She cuts her skin and immediately, without a single hint of hesitation, chooses Dauntless. I cheer along with the rest of my faction as she sits next to me. I know Gildarts, her father, must be disappointed, but since he's one of Candor's representatives, he can't show it. Ur can't either. Not because of the faction. Because of Ultear, and Lyon, and because of me. She's being strong for us. I love her for that. I love her for letting me live the life I want to live.

We leave the Hub soon enough, and I never once look back.

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Okayyyy I know I should be working on Chapter 11 of A Possible Route but the last chapter of SnK has got me bothered and I don't have much inspiration for it at the moment. I'll upload it soon though.

I'm really into this right now though. I just finished Allegiant and, well, no spoilers will be included but I pretty much died. So this is an outlet!


	2. Chapter 2: A Whole Lot of Jumping

Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail, it belongs to Hiro Mashima.

Sorry for the late update...had a physics test on all the material we'd learned this entire year and anyone who knows me knows I'm really very very very very crap at it.

Divergent AU, Gray-centred. I tried to keep them in character while also weaving in some characteristics of their old factions, e.g. Gray—Candor, Lucy—Abnegation etc...

It's going to have some Gruvia, too!

This chapter will have some swearing and grownup humour (T rated, definitely) so watch out!

Well, enjoy and please leave a review!

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**Meant to Be**

**Chapter Two: A Whole Lot of Jumping**

I did it. I chose Dauntless. I finally did it.

Running alongside my fellow Dauntless – it feels strange to say that, now – the massive pressure that has been pushing down all me all my life, it seems, lifts. Even though we've only just left the Hub, I feel like I'm miles away from my old life, reborn, free, all that shit. Wind in my hair, breathing hard, blood pumping—it feels like a part of me I've only just discovered. I relish the moment.

Man, does it feel good.

I'm not sure where we're running, actually, but I've got a guess: the train tracks. And I can only hope I'm wrong. Sure, I'd like to jump, but...

Lo and behold, in the distance, I see the old metal railways of the train tracks in the distance.

Well, isn't that just great. I want to slow to a stop, but I'd be the only one stopping, so I keep running with the group. There's only one representative here; he's tall and bulky and blond. I thought I saw a scar on his right eye earlier, at the Choosing Ceremony, but it might've been my imagination. The rest are all either Dauntless-born or transfers, and there's not many of us. I'm at the back of the group, with Cana and Natsu. We're nearing the train tracks and I'm starting to get worried because we're not stopping, not even slowing down a little. I swear I can hear the train in the distance, but I don't know, I might be making that part up.

Ok, so yeah, let me clear something up: I've said it before and I'll say it again if I have to. Yeah, I want to be Dauntless. I really do. I want to do ultra-cool reckless shit like start a bar fight, get a tattoo on my butt, jump off a cliff. Whatever it is they do, I want to do it. But I literally made the official decision to transfer _two seconds ago_. They expect us to jump onto a moving train when most of us can hardly even keep up with all this running?

Ok, I haven't made it up. There is a train coming. I can hear it now, but I don't see it yet.

I've seen the train before, and I know it's not actually that fast. If I jogged at a steady pace next to it, I could easily catch up. The problem is getting on. Do you...hold the bar? Jump on the actual rail? Do you go feet first, or hold on first? These questions buzz through my mind but I know it'd be stupid to ask them. After all, I didn't choose Erudite. Dauntless isn't about analysing everything you do. Sometimes you need to take a leap of faith.

...And that leap is about to come and I can tell you right now that I'm not ready for it.

Since we're at the back of the group, we get a clear example of how it's supposed to be done. Someone in black – a big guy with piercings and red eyes, Gajeel I think – opens a compartment door and effortlessly slides into it, followed by some others. I see a flash of short blue hair, followed closely by long locks of deep crimson. They're the Erudite transfers.

We're the last to get on and for a second I'm afraid that we – that _I_ – won't make it.

"How the hell..." I hear beside me. Cana's furrowing her brows, her eyes moving rapidly back and forth as the train moves away, trying to find an opening.

We're running alongside the train now, not towards it anymore. I can see the end.

We're amongst the last people running.

I see a handle.

I breathe in. And out.

It's now or never.

In a sudden burst of energy and the familiar sensation of adrenaline, I grab onto a handle and pull myself up. It's actually much easier than I expected. Not _easy_, period; no, it still takes some effort – mostly to steady myself, so I stay balanced – but it's not as scary as I expected.

I'm on the train now, and lean against the compartment wall, sliding down towards the floor. I made it.

Cana joins me soon enough and sits next to me on the floor. Natsu's already on, though the stupid pink-haired idiot's face is not towards us, and his hand is outstretched towards something outside the train. He looks like he'll fall any minute. His scarf is caught in a sudden strong burst of wind, catching my attention, and I'm slightly worried he'll fall and, like, _die_. What's that Flame-Brain even doing?

After his arm muscles contract and he pulls up a flash of blond and grey, I see that he's helped the Abnegation out. Ironic, that.

She's a pretty thing; not exactly my type, but I can appreciate her looks. Her hair is in a bun, which has strands falling out, and her clothes are rumpled. Her long skirt is ripped – from what, I don't know – and she's lost her jacket, or cardigan, or whatever from earlier. Cana's lost her jacket – it lies on the floor, practically ripped in two, and the white is ruined by dirt – and Natsu's shirt is buttoned down all the way. Reminded by their loss of clothing, I look down and—

"Gray, your shirt," Cana says to me, pointing to my right.

I swear and stand up to grab it. Someone – a girl probably – wolf-whistles and I roll my eyes. I got quite a lot of attention back at Candor for losing my clothes. Now here, too? Would I never get a break for simply stripping?

As I retrieve my shirt from the floor – any dirt isn't really noticeable, since it's black – and pull it on. In the process I knock my elbow into someone, and they pull back.

"Oh, sorry." I'm not exactly very sociable or polite, but in Candor, it's frowned upon to apologize for no real reason, since it doesn't really do anything. "Needless apologies and being overly polite makes you stray from the truth, Gray," Lyon had once told me. So of course I apologize.

I meet two pairs of eyes – brown and hazel – and recognize the red and blue hair, contrasting so sharply. The red-haired girl is quite tall and has broad shoulders, and the blue-haired girl is short and looks almost like a child. I know she's sixteen, but she doesn't look it. Her eyes are very intelligent; she's the type of person you know is smarter than you and you don't hold it against them. Well, the two of them are Erudite, judging by their blue clothes, and you get that impression a lot with them. Both girls a kind of like that, though the red-haired girl has an aura that unnerves me for some reason.

Well, that, and the fact that she looks like she could totally take me without even breaking a sweat.

"That's fine," the red-haired girl says, referring to the apology and me whacking her in the face. Her voice is quite neutral, but deep and rich. She holds out her hand.

"Erza Scarlett," she introduces herself, though I already know her name. I shake her hand—her grip is surprisingly firm, probably without her even realizing it, but her hands are warm. They're not soft, like I'd expect of an Erudite—they're calloused and rough. I don't point it out.

"Scarlett indeed," I blurt out, referring to her hair. "Gray Fullbuster," I add hastily. Mentally I'm beating myself up. 'Socializing with your new faction-mates is already going like absolute shit, Gray,' I think to myself.

"I'm Levy McGarden," the blue-haired girl says. Her voice is as small as her physique.

"Erudite?" I ask, though I already know the answer. It's more courtesy, or just making conversation.

They nod. "You are Candor, right?" Levy asks.

I start to nod, then shake my head instead. "I _was _Candor," I correct her. She smiles apologetically.

Well, we get talking and even though Erza and I don't exactly say much, I feel like I've known her forever. I already know her – well, recognize her vaguely – from school. We were in the same class for history, English, and maths apparently, but I never paid much attention at school. We never talked, anyway. It was frowned upon and all that jazz. I guess that's not exactly a problem anymore.

Well, I invite them to sit with us and they come over, sitting on the floor next to Cana, who's drinking something from a flask that she got from who-knows-where. Cana and Erza seem to hit it off ok. Levy seems a bit shy, though that's not a surprise. I didn't exactly expect her to be very bold. Though she's surprisingly straight-forward, almost like a Candor. For the life of me, I can't understand why she chose Dauntless.

But we all have our reasons, I suppose.

Natsu and the Abnegation girl – Lucy, her name is – seem quite buddy-buddy as well. I don't know when they hit it off, but they look like they've been friends for a long time. They keep laughing, and looking at each other. It's weird.

Cana pipes up, "I noticed no one cried for you, when you transferred." At the redhead's expression, she scratches her neck and adds, "Sorry, bitchy thing to say, huh? Comes with being Candor."

Erza nods understandingly, though I can tell the subject is a bit personal. "No one to cry for me," she explains. Levy pats her friend's shoulder.

Cana tells me after we've settled down that she'd been shaking the entire time at the Choosing Ceremony, and was afraid she'd fall flat on her face, and not because of the alcohol. I could see some sadness in her eyes, probably because she'd lost her father forever. I must have the same sadness in mine, because she mutters something I don't catch, though I hear "Ur" and that's all I really need.

Natsu doesn't admit to anything, of course—dense bastard, thinking he's so cool and secure just because he's sure of what he wants, never regrets his decisions, doesn't look back...

Well, it's true, but still. _He _can't know that.

Then again, he might just be unconsciously trying to impress Lucy. But what the fuck do I know.

Lucy turns to Levy. "Don't you miss your parents, Levy?"

Levy's eyes turn sad. "Actually, I—"

Suddenly a voice that travels throughout the whole train compartment barks at us, "Dauntless! Get ready to jump!" It's the Dauntless representative. He has a scar, like I thought, on his right eye. It looks like it's shaped like a lightning bolt, though it might just be the light we're in.

I don't know what he means exactly by "jump", but I guess that means we're getting off. And since we're about forty feet above ground, I don't like the sound of that much.

I get even more confused when our representative, who is supposed to help us with these things, opens the door of the compartment and jumps out without so much as a word of explanation. We rush to the windows to see what happened, only to see him standing on the flat roof of a tall building opposite the rails, brushing some dirt off his shoulder. He shouts something, and I see quite a few people tense up and look around, waiting for someone to jump off first.

"Jumping?" Lucy asks, her expression shocked.

Erza seems to accept this rather quickly. "Well, we have to get off one way or another," she shrugs, and jumps.

Not even the Dauntless have jumped yet, and yet here she is, leaping of a fucking train onto a roof, which is about one-and-a-half, maybe two meters away. I'm amazed by the effortless way she did it; she just fucking jumped off a fucking _moving train_ onto a freaking roof without batting an eye.

I decide I can't let Scarlett outshine me – and yeah, maybe I do feel a bit like a wimp right now – so I step back, clench my fists, and run until I'm at the edge and I leap.

There's a feeling in the pit of my stomach that doesn't leave, not even when I land on the gravel covering the rooftop. Erza gets up, dusting her skirt off, and gives me a hand, which I gratefully accept.

"Well done, guys!" a feminine voice says. We turn to see a white-haired woman – she looks a few years older than us – with blue eyes. Her peculiar hair colour is brought out by her dark grey but not quite black dress, decorated with bows. For some reason I think she'd look better in pink, but I have no clue where that idea comes from so I dismiss it.

"Mirajane Strauss," she introduces herself. "Dauntless representative. Sorry I couldn't make the ceremony. But that was quite a jump for your first time! Good job, you two." She smiles, and it would be almost contagious if I was the smiley type. Erza gives a small victory smile.

The original Dauntless jump next, landing on their legs and not on their backs like I had done. I see Gajeel, and that blue-haired girl that I compared to a pool. Like, twice. They dust themselves off and greet Mirajane, who they seem to be familiar with. Well, the white-haired woman seems like a nice person. She's very cheerful for a Dauntless, that's for sure.

Natsu is next, followed closely by Levy and Lucy, who have jumped together with their arms linked. Natsu manages some sort of decent landing – he rolls over a few times – and jumps up immediately, shouting about how he's "fired up."

When we've all arrived and the train has already passed us, Mirajane and the other representative, whose name, I've learned, is Laxus, call us together. We stand near a ledge with what looks like a hole in the roof that leads to who-knows-where. It's like an abyss, black as the clothes they wear, and when they tell us to jump I don't know what to say.

"Well?" Laxus says, his voice carrying over a few miles probably.

"Someone will have to go first," Mirajane says, glancing at Erza and me. Yeah, no, not happening. I'm not going to jump off the building I just got on. I need, like, five minutes first to remind myself I haven't died.

Well, _someone_ seems to have other ideas up her sleeve.

"I'll go," someone behind me says, in a voice that's decisive and strong yet feminine and soft and why am I overanalysing voices here anyway? Point is she's going, she's going to jumo, so I won't be first.

Honestly, I am more than ok with that, especially when I look into the pit again.

I'm surprised when the Dauntless girl glides past me, blue hair flowing to the side in the wind. I see she has her jacket zipped up for some reason, and her hair is more wavy than curly, like I originally thought. Her jaw line is, like, really defined. That's weird. I don't know why I even said that.

She steps onto the ledge, her boot heel making a sharp sound on the cracked concrete. She looks down, holding out her arms to keep her balance. Like a cat or something. She looks behind her, at someone I'm assuming, before Laxus says, "Today, Lockser." Impatience creeps into his voice.

Lockser is her last name, then. Hm.

Not that I care.

I hear her take a breath. Her knuckles turn white as she clenches her fists, and she jumps.

Laxus turns to us with an unimpressed gaze. "Who's next?"

* * *

Um, about the first jumper thing...I was going to make it Gray, but it felt it was way too...I don't know. Even though the story is Gray-centred, I don't want it to be all about him, so I probably won't make him top of his training and everything. Ok? Ok!

Thanks for reading and please leave a review!


	3. Chapter 3: Dauntless

**Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail, it belongs to Hiro Mashima.**

**Thanks for the lovely reviews! I appreciate it :)**

**Keep in mind that this is an AU, and I am not following the Divergent storyline. I'm not even sure if I should include Divergents or not.**

**Ah, exam week slowed me down. So obviously I decided to write a new chapter right after. Well, anyway, enjoy reading please leave a review!**

* * *

**Meant to Be**

**Chapter Two: Dauntless**

"Alright, initiates! Get up, get up! We're meeting in the Pit in five!"

Mirajane's cheery voice carries far and wide through the initiates' dorm. The minute we arrived here, we were told three things:

Yes, boys and girls will be sharing a dorm.

No, there are no separate bathrooms.

No, _you may not jump into the Pit you godforsaken moron._

Well, first things first: it's dark. I hadn't actually known what to expect of the Dauntless compound, but it's not nearly as orderly as Candor's was. Candor consists of a few rows of houses and apartments, but Dauntless is like a labyrinth filled with corridors, passageways, and loads of dangerous factors that probably need, like, an engineer to look at them.

Like the Pit. It's the heart of the compound, the place to be; where everything happens and where all the people are. It's basically what the name implies: a pit, with a huge glass roof. It's supposed to provide light during the day, but at night, like now, there are blue lanterns hanging everywhere. There are paths and walkways, but no railings or anything, so anybody could fall off the side at any moment. I'm surprised they let kids near the thing. Aside from the no-railings issue – which Natsu, _of course_, immediately took an interest in – there are shops, tattoo parlors—I saw someone offering rock-climbing classes on the side of the Pit.

Then on the right is the Chasm. And it's also exactly what the name implies. Yeah, we don't go there.

Right after we'd all jumped – after Natsu, Erza, Levy, Lucy and Cana, I decided to follow those idiots – we discovered there was a net at the bottom that actually led to the entrance of the Pit. Mirajane called it "the back entrance," though I'm not sure where the front entrance is just yet.

So now, after all those conundrums, we're basically just here in our dorms getting everything unpacked. And with "unpacked," I mean we're doing nothing, because we couldn't bring any personal belongings. I lost my shirt on the way to the dorms – Lucy mentioned she saw it dangling off the edge of the Pit, for some reason – but I still have my trousers and shoes, somehow. No jacket, no shirt. It's not that I don't get cold; I do, but only when it's snowing and I'm outside in the nude. _Then_ I can feel goose bumps. Most of the time, though, I don't feel the cold. That, or I just don't mind it. Either way, I'm fine with it. I just hope Dauntless is more accepting regarding my habit of stripping. Maybe we can organize an annual expedition down into the Pit: we can call it community service, or "Get Gray's Shit out of the Pit Day". I'd probably leave a small pile of clothes there every week. Thankfully, though, nobody has pointed out my shirtlessness just yet. I could always get a new shirt at one of the stores at the Pit later.

After Mirajane's announcement, we decide to leave. Since we already have beds picked out we have no real reason to stay, so we meet up at the pit, where Mirajane and Laxus are waiting for us.

"Welcome again!" Mirajane says, as cheerfully as ever. Her hair is _really_ white, even in the blue blinking lights. "Well, now that you've all moved in and are comfortable—"

I hear beside me Cana snort.

"—now that you're all _comfortable_," she repeats, a vein popping in her forehead, "it's about time we tell you all about Dauntless initiation." By the end of the sentence she was back to her friendly façade.

Some confused murmurs. Laxus puts his hands on his hips, his look stern. "Ok, listen up!" he booms. "There are three stages to Dauntless initiation: the physical stage, the emotional, and the mental."

Mirajane nods. "In the physical stage, you'll learn how to fight and have to fight each other, eventually. You'll get scores based on your rank—the times you've lost, the times you've won, the progress you've made. Then there's the emotional stage, which is yet to be revealed. The mental stage is the final stage, which is also a surprise. Traditionally…" Mirajane hesitates at this point. "Well, actually we're supposed to split you up into two groups: Dauntless-born and transfers. One group would train with Laxus, the other with me. But this year, we have an unfortunate shortage of initiates. We usually have sixty or more. This year we barely have thirty," she admits. "Therefore you will be training together as one big group."

"As for those of you who whine and tell us it's unfair," Laxus quickly cuts in, "we will take into consideration whether you transferred or not. Your scores and rank will not be affected by your former faction—only by your dedication to your new one."

"One more thing," Mirajane saiys. "Whoever ranks in the lowest three, gets kicked out at the end of each stage and will become factionless."

There's gasps from the crowd, and shouts of "That's unfair!" and "What the hell?"

"Quiet!" Laxus scowls, his scar illuminated in the blue lanterns' light. "You will _not_ complain. This is _not_ negotiable. You will abide by _our_ rules. You chose us…" He dramatically spreads his hands, gesturing at all of us.

"Now let us choose you."

Everything is quiet.

"Well, time for dinner!" Mirajane says sweetly. "All to the dining hall in an orderly fashion, please!"

Cana and I follow the Dauntless-born and the rest out, while Lucy and Natsu trail behind us. The sounds of Natsu's laughter and Lucy shouting at him never far behind. Cana nudges me and points at them with her thumb, her brown eyes mischievous.

"Getting very chummy, aren't they? Good thing they don't have a bed next to each other or we'd be hearing that all night, am I right?" she asks, taking a sip of a metal flask she's pulled out of somewhere.

"Where did you even get that?"

"Up your ass. Want some?" she asks, shaking the flask so I could hear the contents swirling around in it.

I shake my head. She just shrugs again and tips her head back, gulping down a few mouthfuls and lets out a satisfied sigh. When we arrive at the dining hall, which is a large room filled with long metal tables and benches, the smell of food fills my nose and I realize how hungry I actually am. There's noise all around us, behind us and overhead on the balconies. We look around for a place to sit where we won't get impaled on someone's piercings or get suffocated by all the strong-looking men and women with muscles as big as my head.

"Oi, Stripper, Boozy!" a gruff voice calls from one of the tables. I turn to see it it's that crazy-eyed, crazy-haired, crazy-pierced Dauntless guy motioning at us to join him at his table. He's still wearing his devilish grin.

As we arrive at the table, I sit down, but Cana just rolls her eyes, hands on her hips. "_Boozy_, really? Best you could do?"

He just smirks. "Gihihi. Heat of the moment, sister. Name's Gajeel Redfox, by the way," he says, even though we hadn't asked.

"Cana," Cana says, crossing her hands over her chest. I notice she hasn't said her last name, Alberona, probably because she isn't too keen on letting everyone know she's Gildarts' daughter.

Next, he looks at me expectantly with his beady red eyes, so I say, "Gray Fullbuster."

"Candor?" he asks. I almost groan. _Again_.

"Yeah, son," Cana answers, taking a last swig from her flask and setting it down with a loud bang. "Don't lie or you'll die! Honesty is cool," she rambles. I sigh. She's getting tipsy, and that only means trouble.

A moment later something catches Gajeel's attention and he waves at them. I immediately recognize her. She's the Dauntless girl with the blue hair, the Lockser girl that jumped first. I have to admire her for that. And her hair. And, you know, just her entire face. I mean, she's alright, I suppose. She has nice eyes—blue and deep, like two pools of water at nighttime. It reminds of me of the time I went night swimming once with Cana. That night had ended a little differently than planned… I try to ignore the flush of blood to my face at the memory.

She introduces herself to us as she sits down. "Hi, I'm Juvia," she says, sitting down next to Gajeel, opposite me. Her voice is silvery, almost airy. She doesn't really strike me as Dauntless—though her clothes clearly state she is, I think she'd make a good Amity or Abnegation. She seems so…nice, so innocent. Kind of like Mirajane, but there's something different. I can't put my finger on it. She's definitely the opposite of Gajeel, though they appear to be friends.

"I'm Cana. This is Gray," Cana says on my behalf, pointing a finger at me. I kind of resent her for it for a moment. I mean, I can introduce myself.

Gajeel waves his hand at our direction as if to brush Cana's introduction off. "Nah, Juvia, don't listen to them. That's Boozy—" Gajeel points at Cana, then at me. "—and that's Stripper. They're Candor; we'd better watch our mouths around them. Gihihi." He chuckles at his own little joke.

"You mean _Dauntless_," Juvia corrects him kindly, laying a hand on his shoulder. "They're Dauntless now."

"Not yet, anyway," Cana reminds her. "None of us are, yet." Her lips are pressed in a thin line as an uncomfortable silence hangs over us.

At that moment Erza, Levy, Lucy and Natsu join us. Levy and Gajeel share a little tension, I notice. Weird. Everybody starts talking and we start eating—there are some cooked vegetables, fruits, and soups I know, but also some unfamiliar food. Like hamburgers. They're circular meat paddies, and they are _amazing_.

"So, Gray," Juvia says between mouthfuls of food, "tell me about yourself." Everybody else is talking, and I've been immersed in eating, so I haven't really contributed to the conversations flying around. And she sounds genuinely interested and I like her well enough, so, what the fuck.

"Like what?" I ask.

Juvia shrugs. "Oh, I don't know…anything. Your full name. Your hobbies. The season you like best. Your favourite colour…" She leaves it hanging, as an unspoken "etc…"

"My full name is Gray Silver Fullbuster," I say. That one's easy. "Hobbies include walking around naked, being in the nude..." She giggles. "And snowball fights, I guess."

She perks up. "Really?"

I nod. "I used to have those all the time as a kid," I explain. "Winter's my favourite season, so..."

"Me too! All the time," she says. "Gajeel was an easy target. He was the tallest growing up." She smiles at the memory. "So, favourite colour?"

"I never really thought of a favourite colour. Black, I guess."

"Black isn't a colour," she says cheekily.

I sigh. "Fine, then. Um…blue, I guess."

"What kind of blue?"

I shrug again. "Not the Erudite blue, or sky blue. More like…a deep, darker blue." Kind of like her eyes, but I can't say that. "Okay, your turn."

"My name is Juvia Sunny Lockser," she starts. "My hobbies are...sewing and swimming."

I crack a smile. I knew my pool comparisons had to come from _somewhere_.

"My favourite season is summer," she says, "especially the rainy season. And my favourite colour is blue. Though, come to think of it, grey's a very nice colour too."

She looks me right in the eye, and I find myself unable to look away. Her eyes are_ very_ blue.

She blushes and looks away. "A-anyway, try the dessert. It's very good," she says, offering a plate of chocolate cake.

The food was really good already, but once I get to dessert I realize I made a good choice in the Choosing Ceremony. The chocolate cake is just _so good_.

"Oh, my gosh," Cana says, leaving her fork in her mouth a bit longer than necessary, her eyes closed as she takes her first bite of cake.

"Mm-hmm," Erza agrees through bites of strawberry cake. I didn't think she'd have a sweet tooth.

Juvia giggles. I glance at her and notice that she's still wearing her leather jacket, which I find strange. I know I wouldn't be able to keep on a jacket all day if I tried.

"Aren't you hot in that?" I ask, gesturing at her jacket.

"Aren't you cold in that?" she retorts, gesturing at my…well, gesturing at not-my-clothes.

I shrug, and when she giggles I can't help but crack a smile.

I decide I quite like this Juvia girl.

* * *

**Okay, so the initiates don't know this, but the second and third stages go something like this:**

"**The second stage is the emotional stage; initiates are put into a simulation where you face your innermost fears, oblivious to the fact that it is a simple simulation, and have to calm themselves to get out. The ****Divergent**** seem to have a knack for this stage, as they are aware it is not real.**

**In the final stage, the mental, initiates are put into their fear landscapes, which reaches for every fear within the person subjected to it and creates a simulation in which they must face each one. This time, they are aware that it is not real."**

**That's from the Wikia page. I changed the rules a bit – obviously – to make it more interesting. As for the actual plot of this story, I have a few ideas. The first few chapters are just about Gray's transformation from Candor to Dauntless.**

**Sorry for the late update, and please R&R!**


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